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Atlantic Championship Graduates Off To Solid Start in 2009


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BROWNSBURG, April 28, 2009: Several graduates of the Cooper Tires Presents The Atlantic Championship Powered by Mazda have gotten their 2009 seasons off to strong starts in various forms of North American motorsport. Here is a quick recap of what Atlantic alumni have been up to through the early stages of 2009:

INDY RACING LEAGUE INDYCAR SERIES Heading into next month’s Indianapolis 500, three Atlantic graduates find themselves inside the top-10 of the series point standings. Ryan Hunter-Reay is the highest-ranked former Atlantic driver, as he currently finds himself fifth in the championship standings after three races with a best result of second in the season-opener at St. Petersburg.

“Atlantics was a transition from the spec cars at Skip Barber into real team motorsports, so it was a good transition that way,” said Hunter-Reay of his Atlantic experience. “It was a good year I was there in 2002 and it prepared me in a lot of ways, basically working with a full team, engineers and crew. That’s the biggest way. The cars were powerful, light and had a different feel than Barber Dodge, which geared me in the right direction. It was a good move. I’m definitely glad I raced those cars. I’m glad I made that step into Atlantics.”

One position behind Hunter-Reay in the standings is Danica Patrick, who has scored top-five results in each of her past two IndyCar starts with a best result of fourth in Round 2 at Long Beach. Patrick once again heads into the month of May as one of the top contenders for an Indianapolis 500 victory.

The third Atlantic graduate in the top 10 is second-year competitor Graham Rahal, who is currently ranked eighth in the championship. Rahal has started from the pole in two of the season’s three races and owns best results of seventh at both St. Petersburg and Kansas. He already holds the distinction of being the youngest race- and pole-winner in IndyCar Series history and is looking to become the youngest winner in Indianapolis 500 history next month.

Sitting just outside the top 10 in 11th place is Atlantic graduate Dan Wheldon, while 2007 Atlantic champion and ’09 IndyCar rookie Raphael Matos is currently 16th. Atlantic alum Alex Tagliani is 20th in the IndyCar standings, having competed in two of the season’s first three races.

INDY LIGHTS SERIES The top five in the 2009 Indy Lights Series point standings is dominated by drivers with Atlantic Championship experience, while former Atlantic competitors have also won three of the season’s four races to date. Sitting atop the championship standings is Jonathan Summerton, who has finished seventh or better in all four of the season’s races with a best result of second in the season-opening race at St. Petersburg. Summerton also competed in the 2009 Atlantic Championship opener at Sebring, scoring a third-place result.

One spot behind Summerton is former Atlantic competitor Junior Strous, who opened his Indy Lights career in a big way with a pair of victories in the season-opening doubleheader at St. Petersburg. J.R. Hildebrand, who contested the full 2007 Atlantic Championship, is currently fourth in the championship on the strength of a victory after starting from the pole position at Long Beach. Hildebrand is followed by Canadian racer James Hinchcliffe, who currently ranks fifth in the standings with top-six results in three of his first four starts, including third-place runs in the Round 2 at St. Petersburg and Round 3 at Long Beach.

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES Atlantic graduates A.J. Allmendinger and Sam Hornish Jr. have both enjoyed career-best race results in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in the early stages of the 2009 season. Allmendinger, the 2003 Atlantic champion, scored his best ever Sprint Cup result with a third-place performance in the season-opening Daytona 500. He is currently ranked 27th in the point standings.

Hornish, a full-time Atlantic driver in 1999, picked up the best result of his Sprint Cup career earlier this month with a ninth-place run at Phoenix. He also earned his best-ever starting spot last weekend at Talladega, where he started fourth. Hornish is currently 31st in the championship.

AMERICAN LE MANS SERIES Atlantic graduates are inside the top-two positions in three of the four class point standings through three rounds of the 2009 American Le Mans Series and account for five class victories. In the LMP1 category, 2006 Atlantic champion Simon Pagenaud celebrated his first career American Le Mans Series victory alongside team owner and co-driver Gil de Ferran in Round 3 at Long Beach. Pagenaud and de Ferran are currently second in the LMP1 point standings.

Leading the LMP2 standings and going a perfect three-for-three in class victories thus far is Atlantic grad Luis Diaz. The Mexican racer shares his ride with countryman and team owner Adrian Fernandez. In GT1, former Atlantic driver Johnny O’Connell opened the 2009 campaign with his record eighth class victory in the Mobil 1 12 Hours of Sebring presented by Fresh From Florida, and is currently ranked second in the GT1 point standings alongside co-drivers Jan Magnussen and Antonio Garcia. However, O’Connell’s focus will shift to the new Corvette program in the GT2 class later this summer, after he goes for his fourth class victory in the prestigious 24 Hours of Le Mans.

GRAND-AM ROLEX SPORTS CAR SERIES Atlantic graduates have celebrated overall victories in both of the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series races to date, with 2000 Atlantic champion and 2004 Indy 500 winner Buddy Rice claiming the overall victory in the season-opening Rolex 24 At Daytona alongside Brumos Racing co-drivers David Donohue, Darren Law and Garcia. Last weekend at Virginia International Raceway, Atlantic graduate Alex Gurney and two-time Atlantic champion and 35th Anniversary Atlantic Championship All-Star Team member Jon Fogarty celebrated their first victory of the season.

The victory moved Fogarty and Gurney to second in the Daytona Prototype championship standings, trailing co-leaders Donohue and Law by just one point. Others with previous Atlantic experience in the Daytona Prototype top-10 include Romain Dumas (sixth), Memo Gidley (eighth), Michael Valiante (ninth) and Guy Cosmo (10th).

In the Rolex Series GT class, former Atlantic competitor Andy Lally opened the season with the class victory alongside co-drivers Patrick Long, Jorg Bergmeister, and Justin Marks. He and Marks finished 15th in class last weekend at VIR, putting Lally fifth in the GT driver standings. Dane Cameron, a 2008 Atlantic graduate, is currently tied for seventh in the GT driver standings, while another former full-time Atlantic driver, Mike Forest, is ninth.